The murder trial is underway for Kouri Richins, a Utah woman accused of killing her husband before writing a children’s grief book on death.
According to The Salt Lake Tribune, Richins is facing numerous charges, including:
- Aggravated murder
- Attempted aggravated murder
- Insurance fraud
- Forgery
While her defense team described Richins as a “mother who wants to go home to her children,” the prosecution stated that she had an affair, forged a signature on a life insurance policy, and murdered her husband, Eric Richins, by spiking a Moscow Mule drink with fentanyl.
During opening statements, chief prosecutor Bradley Bloodworth stated that “evidence will prove that Kouri Richins murdered Eric for his money and to get a fresh start at life,” NBC News reports.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, charging documents indicated that the marriage ran into trouble in 2020, when Eric said he had discovered “ongoing abuse and misuse of his finances” at the hands of the defendant.
Eric subsequently removed Kouri Richins as the beneficiary from his life insurance policy, and transferred the trust to his company interest and residence to his sister.
Kouri Richins later allegedly falsified court documents in an attempt to get a loan, according to prosecutors.
In 2022, she applied for a life insurance policy for Eric, and allegedly forged his signature. Also that year, she obtained fentanyl from an acquaintance, according to the charging documents.
Days later,while speaking to a friend, Eric Richins asserted that the defendant “tried to poison me.”
Months after acquiring the synthetic opioid, Richins allegedly paid the same acquaintance for additional fentanyl.
On March 4, 2022, Kouri Richins contacted 911 and said her husband had stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead at pronounced dead at 4:58 a.m. that morning.
The defendant later self-published a children’s book titled “Are You with Me?” about a father, depicted with angel wings, watching over his young son after his death.
Kouri Richins’ attorney Kathryn Nester, told the court that Eric did not finish the Moscow Mule drink on the night in question and that investigators never tested the cup for evidence.
A medical examiner, however, stated that Eric had “illicit” fentanyl in his system, at five times the lethal dosage.
Police arrested Kouri Richins in May 2023.
Additional charges filed accused her of a previous attempt to kill Eric by spiking his sandwich on Valentine’s Day 2022.
“After one bite, Eric broke into hives and couldn’t breathe,” an arrest affidavit read. “He used his son’s EpiPen and Benadryl “before passing out for several hours.”
Richins, a mother of three children, has maintained her innocence.
Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Kouri and Eric Richins/Facebook]